ORAL’s GH₵21bn Recovery Claim ‘Unrealistic’ – Egyapa Mercer

Accra, Ghana – Former Sekondi MP and Tourism Minister, Andrew Egyapa Mercer, has questioned the feasibility of the government’s claim that it can recover GH₵21 billion from stolen state assets through the Operation Recover All Loots (ORAL) initiative.

Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile, Mr. Mercer said much of the alleged funds have already been spent, making recovery practically impossible.

“GH₵21 billion is huge. Mr. Mahama promised through the ORAL committee that we were going to recover this for Ghana. We are still waiting to see how that will happen,” he said.

He pointed to the National Cathedral project as an example, noting that millions of dollars have already been paid to contractors and workers. “How are you going to recover money that has already been spent? People have been paid. How do you tell Ghanaians you’re going to get it back?” he asked.

Mr. Mercer’s comments echo concerns raised by former Auditor-General Daniel Domelevo, who criticised delays in prosecuting those implicated in ORAL investigations, describing nine months of inaction as excessive.

While Mr. Domelevo maintained that the state could potentially recover $21 billion from various stolen assets, Mr. Mercer urged that accountability efforts must be grounded in realism about what can actually be retrieved.

ORAL had previously presented over 2,000 possible corruption cases to the Attorney-General, highlighting the scale of the government’s anti-corruption efforts.